ORISE Fellowship at CDC - Orise Fellow ORISE Employee Review

I had an Orise Fellowship at CDC for several years in in two different Centers. Very carefully weigh your options and assess yourself and your value before accepting one of these fellowships. This program is broken. Even several years ago, this was a viable pathway into CDC. It no longer is. It might be a victim of its own success. I think perhaps programs got used to being able to find people with the same skillset and commitment to public health as full-time employees but at less than half the cost. They used to hire fellows, but they no longer do. You will not likely get a job after your fellowship despite how well it goes. Orise fellows are currently seen as the lowest of the low. Your supervisor and co-workers will not respect because you are there as an Orise fellow. It doesn't matter what your education, experience, and skills are. They do not respect fellows. They do not mentor you. They do not spend time with you. Orise is better than being unemployed. It is probably only a good option if you truly do need experience. But who needs experience after a masters? You need a job. CDC is a federal agency run by southern people. It is not the sophisticated employer its reputation leads you to believe. The overwhelming majority of people here went to Emory or some university in Alabama or both. It is a regional employer and the culture is very very southern, which is to say that non-southerns will find it bizarre, hierarchical, and not task focused. There is a big issue here with women that are married to wealthy men just working here to fill their time. This type of person will likely be your manager. One Division I worked in did not have a single person qualified in the subject matter they address. Now that I am interviewing in the field outside of CDC, I am hearing things like "We are only involving CDC as a courtesy."